WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Following the modest pullback seen in the previous session, stocks saw further downside over the course of the trading day on Tuesday. The major averages initially moved higher but slid firmly into negative territory as the day progressed.
The major averages ended the day just off their lows of the session. The Dow slid 293.18 points or 0.6 percent to 49,149.38, the Nasdaq declined 144.43 points or 0.6 percent to 24,529.96 and the S&P 500 fell 45.13 points or 0.6 percent to 7,064.01.
The weakness that emerged on Wall Street came as the price of crude oil has moved sharply higher over the course of the day.
Extending the significant rebound seen on Monday, U.S. crude oil futures are surging by more than 5 percent on the day.
Crude oil prices are further offsetting the nosedive seen last Friday amid concerns ahead of the expiration of the ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran.
In an interview with CNBC this morning, President Donald Trump said he expects to 'end up with a great deal' with Tehran but indicated the military is ready to resume bombing Iran when the ceasefire expires on Wednesday.
A report from the New York Times citing a U.S. official also said Vice President JD Vance's trip to Pakistan has been suspended because Iran did not respond to American negotiating positions.
Earlier in the session, the markets benefitted from a positive reaction to some of the latest corporate earnings news.
Shares of UnitedHealth (UNH) are spiked by 7 percent after the health insurance giant reported better than expected first quarter results and raised its full-year earnings guidance.
Homebuilder D.R. Horton (DHI) has also surged by 5.8 percent after reporting first quarter earnings that exceeded analyst estimates.
On the other hand, shares of 3M (MMM) slumped by 1.9 after the conglomerate reported better than expected first quarter earnings but provided disappointing full-year guidance.
Early buying interest was also generated in reaction to a Commerce Department report showing retail sales in the U.S. surged by more than expected in the month of March.
The report said retail sales shot up by 1.7 percent in March after climbing by an upwardly revised 0.7 percent in February.
Economists had expected retail sales to jump by 1.4 percent compared to the 0.6 percent increase originally reported for the previous month.
Excluding sales by motor vehicle and parts dealers, retail sales surged by 1.9 percent in March after growing by 0.7 percent in February. Ex-auto sales were expected to leap by 1.3 percent.
Sector News
Gold stocks moved sharply lower along with the price of the precious metal, resulting in a 6.4 percent plunge by the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index.
Substantial weakness was also visible among airline stocks, as reflected by the 4.3 percent nosedive by the NYSE Arca Airline Index.
Pharmaceutical, commercial real estate and utilities stocks also saw considerable weakness, while energy stocks surged along with the price of crude oil.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index advanced by 0.9 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose by 0.5 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets moved to the downside over the course of the session. While the German DAX Index slid by 0.6 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index and the French CAC 40 Index both slumped by 1.1 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries came under pressure after ending the previous session roughly flat. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, jumped 4.2 basis points to 4.292 percent.
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